Turnabout Species
by Rex T. B
Summary: Murder after murder after murder after murder... The ZPD has been chasing a serial killer through one murder after the other, but to no avail. Now, the latest victim, a male bunny, has somehow managed to knock out his killer before dying. The culprit? Nicholas Wilde. At least... that's what everyone believes. But we all know the formula for mob mentality, now don't we?
1. Prologue

**All right. Let's do this. This story is gonna be really long, similar to actual Ace Attorney trials. There are gonna be some disturbing parts since this is a murder trial, after all. I recommend reading this if you're well-informed about the AA universe, since a lot of references pertain to that one series. This chapter is relatively short, considering it's just the prologue, but things will start to get longer once I get into the swing of things.**

 **Okay, no more delaying. Chapter one of 'Turnabout Species'. Hope you enjoy! Cause I'm definitely gonna enjoy writing this.**

* * *

 _March 18, 9:28 PM_

 _? ? ? ? ? ?_

"Hmmm..."

A ZPD cruiser sat on one side of a street, the only source of light being the headlights of said cruiser and a flickering lamppost not too far off. Opposite to the cruiser was a dark alley, similar to those where one would think that shady deals or inappropriate NSFW material would happen. However, neither of the two are relevant as a distress call was what originated from the shifty alley. Officer Nicholas Wilde was the first to arrive at the scene. His usual partner, Judy Hopps, was currently absent due to a massive amount of paperwork that she had to attend to, leaving the fox to scope the scene out first.

Picking up the radio, he spoke in his usual calm demeanor, despite the situation, "Hey, Clawhauser. You there?" Static. It took a while for an answer to emerge, "Nick? Is that you? Are you at the place yet?"

"Yeah. Looks like it came from some dark alley. Just wanted to ask how far the nearest backup is. Y'know, just in case." Nick stared out the window and into the alley he was supposed to check out.

"The nearest squad car is about 25 minutes away. You're gonna have to go in alone." One could easily hear the slight worry in the voice of the large cheetah. The big mammal cared for Nick as they had been friends for a long time. It also helps that the latter was the second half to Benjamin's 'OTP'. "Be careful, alright?"

Nick smiled, 'Heart's almost as big as his stomach.' He looked outside sighed. He had hoped that he wouldn't have to do this alone.

There has been a string of murders popping up all over Zootopia, the victims being a mixture of prey and preds. Very little is known about each case, only that it is most likely a predator who's committing these serial murders, but that's about it. For all he knows, this alley could be the next crime scene. But he was a police officer, damnit. He had a duty to fulfill and a little fear wasn't gonna stop him. After psyching himself up, he exited the vehicle, flashlight in the right paw and his tranq gun in the left. His arms were positioned in a way that they would make a plus sign; the flashlight arm would be the horizontal while the gun arm would rest on it so as to ensure a stable shot. Nick made his way to the alley and lit up the area, as the light from the lamppost did not reach the alleyway. The alley was relatively short, it's defining feature was its 'T' shape. The alley split into left and right paths.

The fox officer grumbled, 'Great. A higher chance that something bad'll happen. Because who wouldn't use this to their advantage?'

As soon as the fox stepped into the alley, a strong scent smashed into his face like a brick wall. It was so powerful that Nick had to recoil and gather his sense from the strong smell. After catching his breath, he could've sworn that the smell reminded him of something metallic. A moment's worth of thinking and Nick had a handkerchief around his snout to at least weaken the scent. Once again stepping into the alley, the smell was a little weaker due to the barrier between his nose and the actual source. It wasn't easy to handle but it was bearable enough so that Nick could actually continue onwards.

Upon reaching the intersection, Nick was faced with a decision. The source of the smell, which was the right path, or the opposite path? As common sense stated, Nick turned to the source of the smell, only to find himself in a battle against his gag reflex. The sight in front of him was a gruesome one to behold. The floor and walls were splattered with so much blood that if it hadn't smelled as such, it could have been mistaken for paint. Numerous tools and sharp object littered the floor such as knives, forks, hammers and the like. And towards the end of the path lie something that would be engraved into Nicholas' brain for the rest of his life. A body of what used to be a male bunny, propped up against the wall, covered in scratches and cuts. The body looked like it had been ripped open, it's contents open for the outside world to view.

Nick stood there, frozen by what he had just witnessed. He had been trained to handle many situations as a police officer, but this was not one of those situations. When his body finally found the strength to move again, he instinctively holstered his tranq gun and reached over to the radio on his shoulder, "CLAWHAUSER!"

It didn't take long for a response to appear, "Oww... Jeez, Nick. Not so loud."

"B-b-b-body! Dead body! I need help! Quick!" Nick's voice was a combination of shock, fear, disgust and worry. In short, he was freaking out.

 **(Quick Note: If the next few sentences are wrong, I accept full responsibility as I do not know how to use police jargon.)** His friend, however, was trained for this situation, and was ready to assist his friend. Clawhauser's attention immediately shifted from Nick to everyone else. "To all available units, we have a 10-33, I repeat, a 10-33 at Officer Wilde's location. All available units, drop whatever it is you're doing and provide immediate backup." Clawhauser shifted back to Nick, acting like a completely different animal than what most co-workers are used to seeing from the jovial and innocent individual. Now, the cheetah was acting akin to some kind of captain of a ship; issuing orders to everyone and acting like a leader. "Nick, I'm gonna need your 10-13. I need more information."

During Benjamin's fiasco, Nick had recovered from the initial shock and had calmed down, "Uh, yeah. Status. The body's dead. Um... Oh dog... The blood seems fresh so... he couldn't have died less than... I dunno... an hour or two ago, maybe even less." And as he said those words, they're implications hit Nick like a truck, "Which means that... the culprit is..."

" ** _Right behind you._** "

Nick didn't even have the chance to turn around. The moment he heard that voice, he felt a sharp pain at the back of his head. The next thing he knew, he was knocked unconscious by an unknown assailant. His flashlight fell to the floor and broke, no longer shining it's bright rays.

"Nick? Are you there? Nick? Nick!" Ben's worried voice continued to call out into the darkness, unaware that no one would answer his cries.

* * *

 **Aaaand that's the prologue. I know it's really short, but this chapter's only supposed to be an introduction. The real fun starts later.**

 **See ya guys later!**


	2. Investigation, Part 1

**Here we go! Chapter two of Turnabout Species! Chapter one if you don't count the prologue...**

 **Anyway! I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this!**

 **By the way, the text will handle the same way it does in the PW:AA series.**

"This is regular text. Conversations and things said aloud use this."

(Words in parenthesis are used for thoughts. Only the owner of the current POV (mostly Judy) know what these say.)

Above the text will be an underlined name. Obviously, it indicates who's talking. But sometimes it will say '? ? ?'. It means an unknown person. Because of this, I'm pretty sure a finished chapter's page will be really really long. In both words and space.

Since there are no visuals I can provide, conversations are not the only thing in this story. Descriptions and narratives will be frequent in painting the story in your head.

In the games, evidence is usually stored in an 'Evidence' tab. Later, during the trials, it becomes the 'Court Record' tab. In the story, the space for that stuff will be called the 'Notes' tab. Before a trial, everything in it will be reviewable. If you can, you can solve this before the story does.

Yes, there will be pun names. That always seems to be a thing the AA universe loves. Bear with me though, I'm not the best at coming up with them.

In the games, your POV is of the main character. This being said we've only ever seen the viewpoint of Phoenix, Apollo, Edgeworth and Layton. Now, it's Judy we're following and you need to think from Judy's POV. Also, that means that when she's talking to a character, they would usually have these small sprite animations (ie. Maya's surprised animation, Godot's signature smile, etc.). I'll leave it to you to think of how each character would look while talking.

One point to note, this world will have badges. What do I mean by that? A defense attorney's and prosecutors badge. Thing is these things kinda of only exist in Japan. I'm just gonna make it so that in Zootopia, these guys have their respective badges.

 **And that's about it. That guide is for those who aren't familiar with how the games in the series play.**

 **There are gonna be real things about trials in this story but I'm not 100% confident in what I write. If anything is wrong, then just assume it's different because it's a different place. Then again, I am gonna take _some_ liberties.**

 **But enough talking, let's get into the story.**

* * *

 _March 19, 7:21 AM_

 _Zootopia Police Department_

 _In Front of Chief Bogo's Office_

Judy

(Whew. Finally done with tonight's paperwork. Being an officer doesn't always mean chasing down criminals. Sure, that happens every now and then, but the real enemy of any cop is the paperwork.)

Judy stood there in front of the door to the Chief's office, ready to turn in the paperwork she had piled up. She knocked on the door and waited. Soon enough, the door opened to reveal Chief Bogo.

Bogo

"Oh, Officer Hopps. What brings you here?"

Judy

"I'm just here to turn in last night's paperwork. I promise that this time, there's no drool on any of those papers."

(My name is Judy Hopps. I'm an officer working in the ZPD. That probably took some heads for a spin since I'm a bunny. Even so, I graduated the academy and even shut down one of the biggest scandals in Zootopian history.)

(The big buffalo in front of me is my boss, Chief Bogo. He's the head of the ZPD. He may seem intimidating at first, but if you get to know him better, he's actually a pretty nice guy.)

Bogo

"Huh? Oh, okay. Well, you might want to hold onto those papers. I have bigger things to take care of."

Judy

(Bigger things? The Chief never turned down paperwork before. Maybe it's why he looks so sad...)

"Umm... Chief? What 'bigger things'? Is it a case?"

Bogo

"... ... ... ... Yes. It's a case. A real bad one."

Judy

"How bad? Like Nighthowler's bad or...?"

Bogo

"*sigh* Worse. I've got a murder case on my hooves. And it's not pretty. Come into my office. You have a right to know after all."

Judy

(Something's definitely wrong. I've never seen Chief like this before. Wait a minute. That's not true, I've seen him like this once. That night! The night of one of Gazelle's concerts. Chief couldn't make it, and I remember him acting like this. But, what could a murder case involve that could bring his spirits so down? We've handle plenty of cases like these before but-)

Bogo

"Hopps! I said get in my office!"

Judy

"Oh! Umm, yes sir!"

(Better not get on his bad side when he's like this. Who knows what could happen?)

 _March 19, 7:33 AM_

 _Zootopia Police Department_

 _Chief Bogo's Office_

Bogo

"Have a seat, Hopps."

Judy

(I have a bad feeling about this.)

Bogo

"Now, as you are aware, in the past few months, there have been a string of murders occurring all around Zootopia."

Judy

"Oh, I've read up on those cases! We've been calling it the 'Extremophilic Murders', haven't we? It's 'cause all of the murders happened in different parts of Zootopia. Sahara Square, Tundra Town, The Marshlands and even the Nocturnal District. The reason why there all connected is because even if they've been in different places, the bodies of the victims are unusually similar to the rest. All of the corpses were practically ripped open. Is that it then? Was there another murder?"

Bogo

"Yes, there has. But that's not the problem with this case. The problem is the culprit."

Judy

"The culprit? Did they get away again?"

(Huh? What's with that face?)

Bogo

"On the contrary, we finally found a prime suspect."

Judy

"Really?! That's great news! Who's the monster who's responsible for this?"

Bogo

"... ... ..."

Judy

"Chief? Why the sudden silence? Who's the prime suspect?"

Bogo

"I'll let you see for yourself. Here. It's the case files."

Judy

"The case files? But I've already read them cover to cover."

Bogo

"They've been updated since the last murder. Have a look."

 _'Extremophilic Murders' case file added to Notes._

Judy

"Okay. Let's see what's new then."

* * *

 _'Extremophilic Murders' case file_

 _A file containing all of the information concerning the 'Extremophilic Murders'._

 _-Check_

* * *

 _Page 1_

 _Location: Sahara Square_

 _Victim: Arty Camelott, 36, Camel_

 _Cause of Death: Loss of blood due to a gaping stomach wound_

* * *

 _Page 2_

 _Location: Tundra Town_

 _Victim: Zachary Frost, 24, Arctic Fox_

 _Cause of Death: Loss of blood due to a gaping stomach wound_

* * *

 _Page 3_

 _Location: Marshlands_

 _Victim: Woody Chompers, 39, Beaver_

 _Cause of Death: Loss of blood due to a gaping stomach wound_

* * *

 _Page 4_

 _Location: Nocturnal District_

 _Victim: Leo Mount, 55, Cougar_

 _Cause of Death: Loss of blood due to a gaping stomach wound_

* * *

 _Page 5_

 _Location: Happytown_

 _Victim: Marcus Hopps, 27, Bunny_

 _Cause of Death: Loss of blood due to a gaping stomach wound_

* * *

 _Page 6_

 _Suspect Details_

 _Age: 34_

 _Species: Fox_

 _Known Affiliations: Zootopia Police Department_

 _Name: Nicholas Piberius Wilde_

* * *

Judy

"'Marcus Hopps'... Wait! Marky?! M-m-m-marky Moo?! He's..."

Bogo

"I'm... I'm sorry for your loss, Judy."

Judy

*growl* "Who did this?! I'll make sure they never see the sunlight ever again!"

Bogo

"If you're on the page I think you're on, the suspect details should be on the next page.

Judy

"All right. Let's see who's respon... WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!"

Bogo

"Exactly. This entire time. Our culprit was right under our snouts."

Judy

"But how?! Nick would never take someone else's life!"

(Wait a minute. Chief said this was supposed to be worse than the night howler incident. Nick's supposed to be a cop, and a fox at that. A species that everyone believe to be a shifty bunch. If Nick is found guilty...)

"AHHHH!"

Bogo

"I'll take that scream as your realization. If Nick is found guilty of these murders, who knows what the public will think about the ZPD, or even predators in general?"

Judy

"No... This can't be..."

Bogo

"I'm sorry, Judy, but there's hard evidence pointing to him. He's going to have his arraignment today, at 10 AM. If you want to go check on him, he's probably in the detention center. I'll let you go, since you've already finished up your work."

Judy

"Thank you, Chief!"

(Nick's innocent! Just because he's a predator doesn't mean he did it! He would never resort to murder, much less serial murder! I've gotta get him out of this one way or another, and I think I know just who to go to. First things first, though. She can wait 'till later.)

 _March 19, 8:04 AM_

 _Zootopia Police Department_

 _Detention Center: Visitor's Room_

Judy

(Ohhh... I'm so nervous. I know Nick's been in jail before but it wasn't anything serious. A few misdemeanors, sure, but murder? There's gotta be a mistake somewhere.)

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

"Huh?!"

? ? ?

"Ahem. Earth to Carrots? Are you there?"

Judy looked up from the floor to see that the fox she had come to visit was waiting for her to stop twiddling her thumbs.

"Or did you just come to enjoy the view?"

Judy

(This is Nick Wilde. He's my partner. I-in the ZPD, n-not anything else. Don't get the wrong idea. He's a former con artist, now a police officer.)

Nick

"Hey Judy."

Judy

"Nick! How can you be so calm about this? Do you even know why you're in there?!

Nick

"Of course, I do! They think I'm a killer, duh."

Judy

"'Duh'?! What do you mean 'duh'?! Aren't you the least bit worried that you might just get life in prison?! Or worse?!"

Nick

"Maybe you're the one who needs to calm down, Judy. You sound like you're having a panic attack. There's even tears in your eyes."

Judy

"Huh?"

(Oh, shins! I _am_ crying! He's right. I need to calm down...)

*inhale* *exhale* *inhale* *exhale*

Nick

"There. Feeling better?"

Judy

"Yes. I'm fine now."

Nick

"Good. Heh, for a second there, I thought you were actually worried for my sake."

Judy

"Oh! Uh... um... well, you see... UGHHH!"

Nick

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Judy

"Anyway! I came here to do something about this."

Nick

"Well, if you're here to post bail, you can't."

Judy

"Huh? Why?"

Nick

"They specifically told me that I can't be let go through money. My 'crime' is way too severe, apparently."

Judy

"Well, I wasn't going to anyway. I was actually going to talk to you about your lawyer."

Nick

"Oooo, a lawyer. I _do_ have the right to a lawyer since I can't afford one, but now I'm curious. Who's it gonna be?"

Judy

"She's one of the siblings who have the same birth year as me. Her name's Jamie. She's a defense attorney here in Zootopia. She actually arrived here last year after she finished her studies. I haven't actually had the time to visit her yet. Since I'll be visiting for you, it'll be two pests with one night howler."

Nick

"Disturbing reference, but I'm kinda surprised. I guess the more siblings you have, the bigger the chance of one of them having the profession you need. Little coincidental, but anything'll help."

Judy

"Don't worry, Nick. I promise I'll get you outta here."

Nick

"Thanks, Carrots. Dog knows I needed a pick-me-up."

...

 _March 19, 9:12 AM_

 _Hopps and Co. Law Offices_

Judy

(So this is the place, huh? Looks nice. Good to see that someone managed to follow her dreams, too.)

? ? ?

"Excuse me. Is there something you need?"

Judy

*gasp* "Jamie!"

Jamie

"Wait. Judy? As in Judy 'I saved Zootopia from night howlers' Hopps?"

Judy

*giggle* "Oh, come on. That was two years ago!"

Jamie

"Two years ago since you saved the city! You're a hero!"

Judy

"No... I was doing my job."

Jamie

"Don't be so modest. Now, what brings you to my office?"

Judy

"Well, I wanted to drop by and visit, but I'm afraid I have to be a client today."

Jamie

"Really? So you need me to defend you in court? What exactly are you being charged with?"

Judy

"Wait, no! I'm not the one being charged. Ugh, I should have rephrased that. I mean that I have a client for you to defend."

Jamie

"Oh! Well, who is it then?"

Judy

"He's an officer in the ZPD. He's been charged with murder. First degree."

Jamie

"Another one of these cases, huh? Don't worry, sis. I've handled these kind of cases before. It's how I've made a name for myself here in Zootopia. Your friend is in good paws."

Judy

*sigh* "Thanks, Jamie. You don't know how relieved I am to hear you say that."

Jamie

"No problem, Judy. Now, when is the arraignment?"

Judy

"It's today at 10."

Jamie

"10?! I only have 45 minutes to get to court! Sorry, Judy! Gotta run!"

Judy

"Wait!"

(She's gone. Well the courthouse _is_ pretty far. I hope she gets there on time.)

*deep breath* "Well, time to go back. Hopefully things won't get worse. Especially since I just raised a death flag."

...

 _March 19, 11:00 AM_

 _District Court_

 _Outside of the Courthouse_

Judy

(Hmm... 11 o' clock. The arraignment should be finished by now. Oh! There she is!)

Jamie! How did the... trial... go?

(Oh no. That's not a good look. What happened in there?)

Jamie

"... ... ... ... ..."

Judy

"Umm, Jamie? Are you okay?"

Jamie

"... ... ... ... ... I'm sorry, Judy."

Judy

"Huh?"

Jamie

"I'm off this case. Find another lawyer."

Judy

"W-w-w-w-what?! Jamie! You can't just abandon us like this!"

Jamie

"I can and I will. You didn't tell me that your friend is being charged with the 'Extremophilic Murders'! They have everything! Decisive evidence, witness accounts, even bias for Dog's sake! A predator, and a fox at that, is being charged multiple murder cases. Where do you think the crowd's head at? Ugh! I kept telling him to plead guilty for a lighter sentence but he wouldn't stop saying 'Not Guilty'! I'm sorry for saying this but... your friend is, and I'm sorry for the language, F.U.C.K.E.D."

Judy

"Look. I'm sorry for not telling you but what exactly happened in there?!"

Jamie

"You mean you weren't here for that?"

Judy

"No, I was at work. I just arrived to check up on you."

Jamie

"Well, I have to tell you. To defend your friend is gonna be like walking on water. You're gonna need a miracle with how much stuff they have against him."

Judy

"Is it that bad?"

Jamie

"As bad as it can get."

Judy

"Well, if you're not gonna take this case, then at least recommend someone."

Jamie

"Yeah right. No lawyer worth their salt would willingly take this case."

Judy

"Then..."

Jamie

"I'm sorry, Judy. But I can't help you."

Judy

"But... *sigh* Fine. I understand. Thanks for everything, at... Ow! Hey! Where's that light coming from? It's hurting my eyes!"

Jamie

"Huh? Oh! It's coming from my badge. Must be the sun."

Judy

"A badge? I didn't know that lawyers have badges."

Jamie

"I wouldn't really expect you to know. It's a fairly new practice. It started last year. Us defense attorney get this badge while the prosecution also gets a badge of their own. It's basically proof that I'm a defense attorney."

Judy

"So it's like a police badge, huh? Hmm..."

(Wait a minute. Gears turning, idea forming, two-word-sentence forming. Okay, that was a bit of a stretch. Wait. I have an idea!)

"Hey, Jamie. Do attorneys have assistants?"

Jamie

"Assistants? Well, yeah, we can but we call them paralegals. I don't have one but I have an extra badge back at my office for one just in case. It's like mine but it's a little smaller. Differentiation and all that."

Judy

"Would you mind if _I_ become your assistant?"

Jamie

"Well, I'd have to do some paperwork. I wouldn't take long but... Waaaaait a minute. You're not seriously thinking about taking that case."

Judy

"What other choice do I have?! He's my partner and few people know him better than me! There's no way he's a murderer! If you think you can't prove that, then _I_ will!

Jamie

"Partner? Well well well, I think I'm starting to see why you're so passionate in wanting to defend your friend."

Judy

"W-w-what?! N-no! N-n-not like that! He's my partner in the ZPD!"

Jamie

"Oh! Sorry! Hehe, couldn't help myself."

Judy

"Anyway. Just consider it. Please."

Jamie

 _*_ sigh* "Fine. His trial is in two days, so you have that much time to learn how these things work. Come to my office later at 2 PM. We'll work out the paperwork there. You'll become my assistant for this case and then you can resign afterwards. But that's- oomph!

Judy

*hugging* "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou! I promise, I'll do my best!"

Jamie

"Oof, okay. You can let go now."

Judy

*lets go* "Well, I'm off to the station. I'm gonna need to cash in some of my vacation days to prepare for the trial. See ya, Jamie!"

...

"Heh. I wonder if that comment about me being wrong about their partner is true...

...I'd ship them."

 _March 19, 11:41 AM_

 _Zootopia Police Department_

 _Reception Lobby_

Clawhauser

"Wait. What?!"

Judy

"I said I wanted to use a few of the vacation days I saved up. Last I checked, I had like what? Two months worth?"

Clawhauser

"Uuuuuuuh... Yeah! Sure! But can you say that again? Please?"

Judy

"Sure? I said I wanted to use a few vacation days. Five to be exact. Today, and the next 4 days."

Clawhauser

"Yup, that'll do. I'll just adjust the shifts to fill in your spot."

Judy

"Okay. Thanks, Ben! One question, though. Why did you ask me to repe-"

Officer #1

"YES! YES! I believe you have the 20 bucks you owe me."

Officer #2

"Darn it! I didn't think it was possible!

Officer #3

"It's a sign! The end times are upon us!

Judy

"Really? You had the intercom on?"

Clawhauser

"Well, you've literally worked for two years without taking one vacation day. Stuff like that doesn't go under the radar around here."

Judy

*sigh* You know what? I'm not gonna say anything. Have a nice day, Ben.

Clawhauser

"You too, Judy!"

...

Judy left the station, a look of pure determination on her face. Her next destination, her sister's office. Off to become an assistant. Off learn how to be a defense attorney. Off to learn how to defend her partner... in the ZPD. And crush.

What? Is that blunt enough for you?

Don't worry. She's just a little tsundere at the moment. She'll admit it soon enough.

...

To be continued...

* * *

 **Okay. One more chapter down! Soon enough it's gonna be the trial and thing are start getting serious. Hope you guys enjoyed! I know I did. See ya in the next one!**


End file.
